Attachment 2 - Public CommentFrom: Kimberly Snyder <kimberly@numulosgatos.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 10, 2023 8:48 AM
To: Laurel Prevetti <LPrevetti@losgatosca.gov>; Town Manager <Manager@losgatosca.gov>
Cc: Jan Schwartz <boardpresident@numulosgatos.org>
Subject: For inclusion in Agenda Packet for Town Council Meeting August 15
[EXTERNAL SENDER]
Dear Laurel,
I appreciate our quarterly check-ins. Thank you for meeting with me last month. I have attached a pdf
for inclusion in the packet for the Town Council Meeting on Tuesday August 15. The pdf includes a letter
summarizing the nature of our request, a brief overview of NUMU's offerings, museum/city comps, and
the annual report of our Los Gatos History Project. Please let me know if you require any additional
information. Thank you!
--
subscribe to our e-newsletter
Kimberly Snyder
Interim Director
she / her
p: 408.354.2646
a: 106 E. Main Street Los Gatos, Ca 95030
w: numulosgatos.org
Engaging the community at the intersection of Art, History, and Education.
Muwekma Ohlone Tribe Land Acknowledgment - As a member of the Los Gatos community, I acknowledge that I am a guest on the ancestral and
traditional land of the First People of this region, the present-day Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area historically Federally Recognized
as the Verona Band of Alameda County. I support the restoration and sovereignty of this Chochenyo-Thámien-Ramaytush-Awáswas speaking BIA
documented Ohlone Tribe, as well as all Indigenous Peoples.
ATTACHMENT 2
Los Gatos Town Council
The Honorable Mayor Ristow,Vice Mayor Badame,and Council Members Hudes,Moore,and Rennie
110 E.Main St.
Los Gatos,CA 95030
Dear Mayor Ristow,Vice Mayor Badame,and Council Members Hudes,Moore,and Rennie,
We are writing today to continue the conversation on how New Museum Los Gatos |NUMU and the
Town can work towards a sustainable partnership.Since relocating to the Los Gatos Civic Center in
2015,NUMU has been able to establish itself not only as an integral part of the Los Gatos Community
but also as a significant contributor to the arts ecosystem of Santa Clara County.We provide services
and programs that make Los Gatos an incredible place to live,work,play,and learn,and attract visitors
from the greater Bay Area.
Like most museum/city partnerships in the Bay Area we are asking the Town to invest in our
community museum by reducing rent for 106 E.Main Street to $1 per year,and to allocate $68K
for the Los Gatos History Project to provide matching funds for a grant from the Institute of
Museum and Library Services.This investment will ensure NUMU is able to continue its ongoing
responsibility to maintain and steward the Town of Los Gatos’history collection and provide arts,history,
and cultural educational services to the Los Gatos community.
We are grateful for the partnership with the town and want to express our deepest gratitude for forgiving
rent the past three years.Retaining these funds going forward will enable NUMU to direct donations and
grants into services and programs that directly serve the Town of Los Gatos with art,history,and culture.
Rent forgiveness has enabled NUMU to achieve several key mission-aligned goals that directly support
the Town’s strategic priorities for local history,community vitality,and inclusivity.NUMU is a key feature
of the Town Culture initiatives in the 2040 Town Plan.The 2040 General Plan for Los Gatos commits to
“Enrich the Town by making visual arts,the performing arts,literary arts,and other cultural amenities
more accessible to the Town’s residents.”We have been working tirelessly on critical areas that support
these goals such as the Los Gatos History Project;delivering the high-visibility ArtNow high school
exhibition and program;and collaborating with local community partners and beyond,including the Los
Gatos Library,CASSY,and LGS Recreation.The Town’s rent forgiveness has made a meaningful
impact on all our efforts,and is a testament for what we can achieve together.
What the town’s investment will enable NUMU to achieve:
●Continuing to steward the permanent collection through The Los Gatos History Project which
makes our permanent art and history collection accessible in-person and through an online
database.We display,steward,protect,and in the future,will loan and conserve our collection of
art and history objects that represent the history and art of Los Gatos.The $68,000 investment
from the town will be used as matching funds that are required from the Institute of Museum and
Library Sciences (IMLS)Grant to fund the program.
●Our successful exhibitions,Reclamation,a partnership between the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe
and San Josè State University,has given the town incredible recognition.These exhibitions
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generated in our town,will now travel to various locations beyond Los Gatos for the
foreseeable future.And we look forward to partnering on another exhibition on land stewardship
in the coming year.
●Continue to offer Free days such as Free First Sundays and Family Days which have
quadrupled museum attendance from the Greater Bay Area,bringing new visitors to Los Gatos.
We have had 100 -150 visitors on these days,about 70%from outside Los Gatos.
●Youth Education -The ArtNow high school exhibition creates visibility for Los Gatos with high
schools county-wide,and attracts a large audience to the Museum and the Town.The program
features teen artists,and provides scholarships for award winners.
●Inclusivity -Continue to incorporate our diversity,equity,accessibility,and inclusion (DEAI)
strategic planning in shaping our exhibitions and programs to educate our audience about the
untold histories of Los Gatos,and help us build alignment with Town DEAI initiatives.
●Community Engagement -NUMU collaborates with local community partners like the Los
Gatos Library,LGS Recreation,the Chamber of Commerce,Los Gatos Art Association,
CASSY,and Mosaic America to implement programs and exhibitions that provide a platform for
underrepresented artists and communities.We run the Footbridge summer camp program in
partnership with LGS Recreation and the Arts &Culture Commission to enhance the Town and
involve students in local history.
●Economic Vitality -NUMU has been aggressive and successful in applying for and receiving
grants from local and national organizations,including local Rotaries,National Endowment for
the Arts,Institute of Museum &Library Sciences,The Packard Foundation,SVCreates and more.
These efforts are not sustainable without support from the Town of Los Gatos.Increased rent payments
in July 2024 will paralyze our ability to become a truly world-class destination for art and culture in the
Bay Area.Moreover,we will be unable to adequately steward the history collection and it will once
again languish,hidden away in boxes.This domino effect would decimate our ability to serve Los
Gatos with history,culture,and art.
I ask you to join us in re-imagining our relationship.NUMU is in the Town's 2040 Plan both as a steward
of the collection and a center for arts and culture.Allocating funds and eventually amending the lease
will not only ensure that the museum will exist in 2040,but that it will be able to thrive for decades to
come.Nominal rent would be in line with virtually every museum in our area (see appendix),and signal to
the region that Los Gatos values inclusivity,community,and culture.Please vote to reduce rent for the
upcoming year &invest in our town’s history to support NUMU’s critical role in maintaining–and
expanding–the Town’s cultural footprint,moving toward a deep and permanent partnership.
NUMU’s relationship with the Town of Los Gatos is vital to us and our ongoing ability to serve our
community.Thank you from all of us for your continued support.
In partnership,
Kimberly Snyder |Executive Director Jan Schwartz |Board President
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Request
●Allocate $25K in funds to offset 2024/25 rent.
●Allocate $68K in matching funds for NUMU’s Los Gatos History Project for the Institute and
Library Sciences Grant.
What services does NUMU provide to the Town of Los Gatos?
●The Los Gatos History Project is NUMU’s unprecedented effort to catalog and dive deeper
into its permanent collection.This Project makes our permanent art and history collection
accessible in-person and through an online database.NUMU displays,stewards,protects,and
in the future,will loan our collection of art and history objects that represent Los Gatos.The staff
has decades of cumulative experience in collections care.NUMU stewards unique objects and
archives from Los Gatos history,including the world’s most comprehensive collection
representing the lives of prolific artists and life partners Frank Ingerson and George Dennison,
and their home,Cathedral Oaks,a mountain destination for creatives in mid twentieth century
Los Gatos.NUMU has fundraised over $440k to underwrite the Los Gatos History Project.
The Town of Los Gatos
●NUMU’s mission directly supports the Town’s priorities for local history,community vitality,and
inclusivity.
●We hosted and will travel the exhibition,Reclamation,a partnership between the Muwekma
Ohlone Tribe and San Jose State University,featuring Los Gatos and Bay Area places of
significance to the Tribe.It amplifies the Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Council’s efforts to gain
visibility and federal recognition.
●The ArtNow high school exhibition program creates visibility for Los Gatos with high schools
county-wide,and attracts a large audience to the Museum and the Town.The program features
teen artists from Los Gatos and across the county,and provides scholarships for award winners.
●NUMU collaborates with local community partners like the Los Gatos Library,LGS Recreation,
the History Club,the Anti-Racism Coalition,the Chamber of Commerce,Los Gatos Art
Association,CASSY,and Mosaic America to implement programs and exhibitions that provide
a platform for underrepresented artists and communities.
●has provided $7,500 in funding for the preservation of its cultural patrimony since 2020.
●NUMU is a key feature of the Town Culture initiatives in the 2040 Town Plan.The 2040
General Plan for Los Gatos commits to “Enrich the Town by making visual arts,the performing
arts,literary arts,and other cultural amenities more accessible to the Town’s residents.”How will
the Town work towards budgetary support for the arts in Los Gatos?
●NUMU runs the Footbridge summer camp program in partnership with LGS Recreation to
enhance the Town and involve students in local history.
●Museums provide cultural vitality to a community of our size.They provide an experience that is
both local and global.
●Museums provide a sense of culture and vitality with an experience that extends beyond the
boundaries of the Town.Our exhibits demonstrate awareness and inclusion of people of all
races,religions,ethnicities and sexual orientations.
●Free First Sundays at the museum are free to all,we also offer a free public tour at 11am and
2pm.
●Community Events -NUMU is thrilled to partner with community organizations from Los Gatos
and beyond to provide Free Community Days that have art and history activities,and
multicultural performing arts.
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Examples of Museum/City Partnerships
Museum City Rent Utilities Bldg/Groun
ds upkeep
Town/City
Employees
Public/Priv
ate Private
Partnership
Ainsley
House,
Campbell
Civic Center
Campbell $0 $0 $0 Yes Yes
.Foundation
Campbell
History
Museum,
Campbell
Civic Center
Campbell $0 $0 $0 Yes Yes.
Foundation
Los Altos
History
Museum,
Civic Center
Los Altos $0 $0 $0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
Palo Alto Art
Center,
former City
Hall
Palo Alto $0 $0 $0 Yes Yes.
Foundation
San Jose
Museum of
Art
San Jose $0 heavily subsidized by
city.Operating
expenses offset by
Cultural Affairs Grant
financed through ToT
tax
$0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
Triton
Museum,
Santa Clara
Santa Clara $1 per year $0 Electricity waived
in return of art and
history collection
management.$Gas
based on usage.
$0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
Children's
Discovery
Museum
San Jose $0 heavily subsidized by
city.Operating
expenses offset by
Cultural Affairs Grant
financed through ToT
tax
$0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
The Tech
Museum
San Jose $0 heavily subsidized by
city.Operating
expenses offset by
Cultural Affairs Grant
financed through ToT
$0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
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tax
Mexican
Heritage
Plaza
San Jose $0 heavily subsidized by
city.Operating
expenses offset by
Cultural Affairs Grant
financed through ToT
tax
$0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
Santa Cruz
Museum of
Natural
History
San Jose $0 $0 No Yes.Annual
Fund/Board
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Annual Report 2022-23
Project progress made to date.
The Los Gatos History Project (LGHP)is a three phase project launched September 2020.
Over the course of the past year the team has made significant strides.The goal of the project is to
tell untold stories of Los Gatos and surrounding communities through an exploration of NUMU’s
permanent art and history collections.
Phase I This phase entails cataloging,rehousing,and digitizing NUMU’s entire Art and History
Collections of over an estimated 3,000 objects;in addition to updating the furnishings in the
collections storage room and purchasing museum-grade materials to properly house artifacts and
artworks for preservation.
Phase I update:Program Manager,Cristiano Colantoni,has successfully revamped the collection
room with new collections storage,equipment,and furnishing,ranging from shelving units,
cabinets,flat files,and bookshelves.All remaining furnishing for the collections room has been
successfully installed.The collections room houses all artifacts,art and ephemera that have been
cataloged,rehoused,and digitized by registrar,Alexandra Schindler.Our online collections
database hosted by CatalogIt was launched to the public in December 2021.Students,
scholars,community members,and researchers from across the globe may explore our database
of 1900 items and growing!Items are sorted into 4 categories:Archives,Art Collection,History
Collection,and Natural History Collection.We anticipate the cataloging portion will take through
2023 to complete.We’re also to share that we have received additional funding from the Institute of
Museum and Library Services to continue and expand this ongoing project.Explore the database!
Phase II A demonstration and prep lab will be created to serve as a dedicated semi-public space
to display artifacts,conduct conservation efforts and present public educational programs.
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Phase II update:The museum continued to face challenges with supply chain issues and rising
costs for furnishing.Due to this impact,Colantoni redesigned the space and identified new
furnishings needed to complete the space.We anticipate all items being delivered by Fall 2023.
Phase III includes sharing the history and untold stories of our past,and educating local and
global communities about the lives and times of Los Gatos residents and surrounding
communities.
Phase III update:NUMU was excited to launch phase III of the project in March 2021.Since then
Programs manager,Alexandra Schindler,has hosted a wide offering of programs,and established
many strong community partnerships including:the Los Gatos Library,Los Gatos-Saratoga
Recreation,Muwekma Ohlone Tribe,Campbell Museums,Winchester Mystery House,Saratoga
Historical Museum,History San José,Mosaic America,and San José State University.
Phase IV:Assess artifacts for conservation and implement an internship program for graduate
students to learn and assist in archiving the collection.Update Collections Plan and Policy.
Phase IV update:Have had 2 successful internship cycles.Reaching out to conservators in the
area as partners.Working on identifying and prioritizing items in the collection for conservation.
Summary of Program Offerings
●Family Art +History Day:Celebrating National Diversity Day:Hosted a community
event in partnership with LGS Rec,featuring other history organizations and activities
highlighting the diversity of Santa Clara County.(75 Attendees)
●History Still Life:In partnership with Los Gatos Library,participants had the opportunity to
sketch objects from the collection that were brought out specifically for the program (10
attendees)
●Final Frontiers:An in-person panel discussion talking about the history of place-making,
anthropology,and human development (35 attendees)
●Honoring the Earth Event:with Mosaic America,an Earth Day event celebrating the rich
cultural history of our area with a variety of performing artists,including the Muwekma Ohlone
Tribe (300 attendees)
●(3)Virtual Programs:with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and SJSU (recordings available on
NUMU website)(25 attendees per session)
○Politics of Erasure:Federal Reaffirmation of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe
○The Muwekma Ohlone Past and Present:Heritage Sites of Significance
○The Making of an Exhibition:Reclamation of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe’s History
and Heritage
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●Public Museum Tours:One Curator tour with Allison Railo featuring exhibition updates.
And offer a free history tour monthly on the first free sunday.
●School Tours:Programs Manager educated elementary school students in the classroom
and at the museum;kids handle objects &learn how to think critically about history.(500+
students)
●(2)Weeklong summer camps:Youth learn the untold stories of Los Gatos History and
the surrounding areas;in addition,participants were able to explore items in our
permanent collection.These camps are already scheduled and fully booked for June 2023.
View video of last year’s program
●Virtual content:
○Dedicated page on the website,
○Bimonthly e-newsletter,
○Instagram Social Media Posts featuring content from the permanent collection
●Scholarship:Richard D.Mohr,ceramics historian,author,and Professor Emeritus at the
University of Illinois -Urbana,for part one of a lecture series on local artists Frank Ingerson and
George Dennison.The Boys,as they were affectionately known,are the subjects of his recently
published book The Splendid Disarray of Beauty:The Boys,the Tiles,the Joy of Cathedral Oaks
-A Study in the Arts and Crafts Community.
How much grant funding has been raised to date.
The museum has successfully secured 440k to fund this project.The initial phases were 250k
funded by the County of Santa Clara’s Historic Grant Program.To continue the project the museum
secured a 3 year grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)of $190K.The
IMLS grant requires 1:1 matching funds.
When the project is expected to be completed and open to the public.
There are multiple milestones in the project and each has a different timeline of when it will be open
to the public.The public programming portion of the program is well underway and ongoing,with a
goal to host them in the Collections Prep Lab when it opens in Fall 2023.As mentioned above,
CatalogIt,the online database,has been accessible to the public since December 2021 and the
public may make appointments with the NUMU team to view items in collections storage rooms.
The museum’s lower level space is dedicated to Los Gatos History and opened a corresponding
exhibition,The Los Gatos History Project:Telling Untold Stories,which features items in our
collections that the public is able to visit and enjoy.
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Collections Prep Lab (before)Collections Prep Lab (in progress)
In-person Programing
Final Frontier Lecture Curator tour
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Honoring Mother Earth with Mosaic America Museum Explorer School Tour
Youth Summer Camp (Footbridge Mural Project)
History Still Life Class Family Art Day -National Diversity Day
Collections Room Images
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Virtual Content
Online Collections Database
Social Media Posts
Timeline
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